The present invention pertains to RF (radio frequency) networks and more particularly to an arrangement for supporting virtual end nodes in an RF network.
In an RF network where end nodes communicate with access points via wireless communications, data packets are typically sent to the end node by means of a specific address associated with each end node. The access point is the network device which communicates directly with end nodes . A data packet typically includes, at the beginning, the routing information. The routing information includes the MAC address of the next hop on the network and the IP (internet protocol) address of the ultimate destination end node.
In such a system, the internet protocol address of the destination end node must be registered in the routing tables in each of the RF repeaters and access points in order for messages to travel between end nodes. As a result, the number of end nodes permitted to an access point was fixed depending on the size of the field within the normal internet protocol packet. Thus, if more end nodes were to be added, more access points were required up to the limit of the field in the internet protocol defining the addresses of the access points. Adding access points requires further processing by the RF network, takes up space for additional hardware and is costly.
In addition, sometimes the transmission of data packets to a physical end node requires that the data packet be sent to a subset of physical end nodes served by a particular access point. One data packet would require separate transmissions to a number of physical end nodes and thus, a number of the same data packets would be sent through the network.
Accordingly, it would be advantageous to provide a method for extending the number of physical end nodes connectable to an RF network access point while selectively retaining the ability to transmit a data packet simultaneously to a group of physical end nodes in this extended configuration.